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I think about it a little longer. Do I really want to do this? Meet Drew in a dark cabin, all by myself? It sounds like a terrible start to a horror film.
The pinging of my phone interrupts my thoughts, and I look down at his response. That stupid, annoying part of me that’s suffocated by the anger and pain he caused sparks with life, and that distinct warmth that his presence brought me before trickles in slowly as I read his response back to myself.
Psycho: Unless you plan to walk six miles, grab the four-wheeler at the trailhead. There will be a key in it.
Shit. I forgot how far out it is. My phone chimes again, and the next message almost makes me regret messaging him.
Psycho: I knew I’d be seeing you soon, Flower.
Is it possible he said and did all those horrible things to protect me from his father? Possibly… but how can I ever forgive him? How can I ensure that the next time things get tough, he won’t push me away again and hurt me?
I can’t, and I need to remind myself of that. I need to remember that no matter what, Drew has always been about making himself happy even at the expense of others, and until he shows me otherwise, I’ll play defense, ensuring that I don’t become a casualty in the sick and twisted game of chess he plays.
9
DREW
My blood and body hum with a tingling of awareness. My small taste of her did nothing to quench my need or hunger for her. I can already hear her heady breaths in my ear and feel her little nails digging into my skin. To pull me closer or push me away, it doesn’t really matter. As I leave the house, I only think about seeing her. I didn’t realize how much she meant to me until after everything blew the hell up.
What’s that cheesy saying? You don’t know what you have until it’s gone? Isn’t that the fucking truth? Along the way to the cabin, I wonder why she chose the cabin in the woods as the location to meet. We could’ve met anywhere, but she chose the most secluded option…
Is she scared of being seen with me? Or is she hiding from her brother?
Probably a little bit of both.
The quiet claws through me, an unusual and unwelcome sensation.
Rivulets of moonlight cut across the path as I stride through the woods. My phone vibrates in my pocket, and I jerk it out to make sure it's not Bel calling to cancel on me. I can't handle that shit right now. There’s no way I won’t march right up to the mansion and kidnap her. Fuck, think rationally.
All rational thinking goes out the window when I see his name on my phone. Father. I should change his name to fuckface since it’s far more fitting than father. God knows he’s treated me like an inconvenience for as long as I can remember.
Fuck him. He’s always got a way of ruining everything. This is the first time he's decided to contact me in days, and the only thing I want to say to him is “go fuck yourself.” Well, I’d be more than willing to tell him that, more than willing to stand up to him and put him in the ground. Other things are at stake, other people’s well-being hanging in the balance, so my selfish desires will have to wait a little longer. I choose not to let him ruin my evening and instead hit the decline button and shove my phone back into my jean pocket. A minute later, my phone buzzes again, telling me he probably left a caring and delightful voicemail.
I push my father to the back of my mind and pick up my pace toward the cabin, scanning the trees in case she is out here too. It’s obvious I’m alone. The quiet of nature greets me, and I love it. I enjoy the sound of the wind, the crunching of leaves beneath my boots.
I walk faster to try to burn some of the edge from seeing her at the library. From holding myself back from pulling her away from Seb and ensuring both of them know whom she belongs to. I told her to take the four-wheeler, but I walked the entire way to help curb some of this need in my blood. As I get close to the cabin, the rough wood structure gives way to a spacious clearing of grass that circles the cabin, butting up to a small river. The moonlight glints off it, but my attention is dragged from the beauty of nature and to someone who is just as beautiful.
On the stairs of the cabin, I finally spot her. My Flower.
She's sitting on the top step, a sweater wrapped tight around her slim frame, her sunshine-blond hair tied up in her usual messy knot. My gaze collides with hers, and I don’t even have to be a skilled predator to see how anxious she is. Lucky for her, the only time I want to see tears on her face again is when she’s choking on my cock. I hurt her once already. I’m not going to get another chance to fix this if I fuck up again.
"Been waiting long?" I ask as I check my watch. By my time, I'm early, so she got here extra early to beat me. Smart.
She shrugs one shoulder and tugs her sleeves over her knuckles, wrapping her arms around her middle as if she’s trying to hug herself.
"Hi," I whisper, hoping I put everything I'm feeling into that one tiny word.
“Hi,” she responds, her shoulders dropping.
I creep up the last couple of steps and pause on the porch. "It'll be warmer inside once I turn on the heat."
She nods, then pushes up from her spot, tucking her chin into her chest, almost like she’s trying to avoid looking at me. What the fuck is going on?
Why is she suddenly hiding from me? Not even when I stripped her naked in these woods did she hide from me... My temper rises, and I don’t know what to do with it, so I angrily jerk the screen door open and unlock the cabin using a key from my key ring. Then I shove the door open and beckon her inside.
I take a calming breath, breathing through my nose. I need to calm down and figure this out. Her steps are hesitant as she walks over the threshold, and I follow her, flicking on the light switch along the way. Soft illumination cuts through the darkness, and I hit the buttons on the digital thermostat to warm up the place.
I don't know how long we'll be here, but I don't want to risk her getting cold.
